19 Feb The Power of the Tongue

There are so many various factors that feed into the production and quality of your voice that it is frequently difficult to determine which factor, or combination of factors, is the root of a particular vocal concern. In addition to breathing, posture, vowel shaping, placement, mental blocks and movement, every singer should be aware of the tongue and how it is influencing their voice.

The tongue is actually a muscle organ (made up of multiple muscles) that can be divided into different regions and those regions are subdivided into the individual muscles that create the dynamic movement and function of the tongue organ. The main regions are the Body (the part you can see in your mouth) and the Root (where the underlying muscles that are attached to the chin, jaw and laryngeal portion of your throat). Those three regions are created by the Intrinsic muscles that are within the tongue and alter its shape, assisting in chewing, swallowing and voice and speech production and also by the Extrinsic muscles that attach to bones, cartilage and other tissues in order to change the position of the tongue which also assists in chewing, swallowing and voice and speech production. It is an incredibly complex and important part of your voice production.

The shape and position of the tongue is part of how we create vowels in our speech and singing voices. Those vowels that we use have a direct effect on how our singing voices function. While we won’t dig into the complexities of vocal acoustics in this article, suffice it to say that your ability to hear and modify subtle changes in vowels will help you create powerful, color and ease in your singing voice.

If those muscles of the tongue have unhealthy tension lingering in the muscles fibers, the tongue muscles will struggle to create the shapes and positions you need to take advantage of vocal acoustics and the power of vowels in your singing voice. For the most flexibility (flexibility = strength potential), the muscles of the tongue must be stretched and kept in good working balance.

There are a few helpful options for stretching the tongue muscles and releasing any unhealthy tension. The easiest option for singers to take advantage of is tongue stretches that you can incorporate into your voice practice. Here are just a few of my favorites:

• Hold the tongue out and down as far as you can for 30-45 seconds
• Hold the tongue out and to the right (and then left) as far as you can for 30-45 seconds
• Hold the tongue out and up to the tip of your nose as far as you can for 30-45 seconds
• While singing the melody of a song or on a scale pattern, pretend to chew are large piece of food within your mouth, moving your tongue and jaw all around
• While singing the melody of a song or on a scale pattern, brush your teeth withyour tongue, covering all surfaces of your teeth
• While singing the melody of a song or on a scale pattern, create the “zz” sound with your tongue and then switch to the “ng” sound and then switch to the “ee” sound

After a few minutes of these exercises, you may notice greater ease in your speaking and singing voice. These exercises are very therapeutic and can be repeated several times a day. As you continue to incorporate them into your voice practice, you’ll notice greater flexibility and ease within your voice, helping you feel more stable and confident in your singing.

The other option for addressing tongue tension is to see a licensed massage therapist who specializes in laryngeal massage and tongue therapy. A licensed and well-trained massage therapist may incorporate tongue pulling, movement of the jaw and different massage techniques to help the muscles stretch and become flexible again, helping your speech and singing voice feel greater freedom and ease.

These tongue muscles work hard everyday to help you with your speech, swallowing, chewing and singing and tension can build slowly over time without notice, until one day you feel that your singing voice is not as stable and predictable as it once was, especially through the passagios (transitions between registers).

With these two great options for treating tongue tension, you can take control of your vocal health and feel greater confidence in your singing voice.

As always, remember that the muscles of the body function best when they are well hydrated and have sufficient minerals. It is recommended that you drink enough water throughout the day that you urinate frequently and that your urine output is pale yellow. You can add a quality electrolyte to your water to keep your minerals at a healthy level. Quality electrolytes should not have sugar (many are sweetened with a no sugar option such as Stevia) or artificial colors and flavors. Biosteel (can be purchased on their website or Amazon – www.biosteel.com) is a personal favorite with great flavors, a decent mineral content, sweetened with Stevia and no artificial colors or flavors.

In summary, if you’ve noticed that you have instability in your voice or need more effort to create sound, make sure that you check on your tongue as part of your care and support for your voice. Using stretches or seeing a licensed massage therapist can definitely help address any tension that may have built up within the muscles of the tongue. As you hydrate and care for the muscles of the tongue, you’ll enjoy greater vocal flexibility, vocal health and vocal power.